Monthly Archives: January 2012

Holy shit this has been quite a long time coming. I actually did this update a few months ago but I wanted to edit it before putting it up on the blog.. Other projects came into prominence and Firefly just kind of went to the back burner.

So I want to apologize first of all for the extremely long delay in putting out an updated version of Firefly: Hurtlin’ Through the ‘Verse. I also want to say thank you to everyone who has downloaded it and spread the word about it! Keep doing so! Over 2,000 downloads so can’t be a bad thing!

This is a pretty huge update! 19 pages of new stuff! I look forward to any feedback and tales of using this! That’s why I put it out there! Have fun! Keep flyin’

Changes Made to Firefly V2.1

Backgrounds-

Added suggestion on creating a character with out a background.

Added Lawman and Two-Bit Criminal Backgrounds.

Classes-

Added suggestion on allowing all classes to take any Focus.

Added slight variant to Ability Advancement than that in Box Set 2.

Added Big Damned Heroes optional rule.

Drifter- Slick Vagabond (level 7)- is an ability, no longer a stunt.

Soldier- Battlefield Observer (level 7)- is an ability, no longer a stunt.

Added new Optional Stunt (in GM section)- Was That There Before (6SP): This stunt allows the player to interject something into the scene that wasn’t there before. This could be a barrel of gas, a door in an alley, a much needed clue when they are stuck, etc. This should not derail what the GM has planned to the point where it collapses the session/adventure. All terms should be discusses and agreed upon. GM has final arbitration.

This is a really cool deal! Jez over at Giblet Blizzard is offering to spruce up your RPG products to a professional level for a pittance. Basically you decide what the value is worth after he is finished (and don’t be stingy, because this guy works hard). Go over and read his blog and scope it out!

Now you may be wondering about his credentials.. Well check out Santacore! This shit is fucking amazing and kicks some serious ass! Jez made this look better than many professional products that I’ve seen.

Now if you NEED more evidence of Jez’s ability to pull this awesome “scratch my back and I scratch yours, but not in a porn kinda way” then may I point to exhibit B: The fact that Jez looks like the Dude. And honestly how can you NOT want to help THE FUCKING DUDE! Seriously though, take advantage of this offer! I know I will with Wrath of Zombie Survival Horror RPG v3!!

Carrion Crawlers are awesome and get a good “oh fuck” nod from those who know what they do and a good “eww” factor from those that don’t and just hear them described.

Centipede, Giant [Pathfinder]

Centipedes are disgusting little creepy crawlies. They are extremely agile, fast, and hard as shit to kill. I agree with Zak that real life Giant Centipedes, which reach about 1ft in length, are fucking creepy. I do see the desire or need to put giant (10ft long ones) in a game populated by other gigantic insects.

I could use both and be happy with the result I would illicit from my players. Real life sized giant centipedes would get a “oh fucking gross!” with some shivers response while a 10ft giant centipede would get the “oh shit! Creepy and it could fuck us up!” Making it larger removes that icky factor.

Large Centipede (1ft long)– While the poison of a large centipede is not deadly to humans it certainly is annoying. If bitten a target must make a constitution based save or feel the effects after 2 rounds. Targets become flushed and suffer intense aches and fever. Sweats, queasiness, and dizzy spells follow. Targets take -2 to any ability test they make for the next 6 hours.

Giant Centipede (10 ft long)– Unlike its smaller kin the giant centipede hunts larger animals and humans as prey. The venom of a giant centipede is quite toxic and targets the creature’s motor functions impairing their movements. Targets bitten by the centipede must make a constitution save; failure causes 1d3 damage per round till a successful save.

Chaos Beast [Monster Manual]

Cthulhuian inspired monster. Very cool, however it is too close (in my opinion) to a Gibbering Mouther, so I’m gonna combine the two creatures. See Gibbering Mouther (when I get there).

Chimera [Pathfinder, Castles & Crusades, Monster Manual]

Chimera is a cool looking monster since it is all sorts of wrong. The amalgamation of goat, lion, and dragon states a level of perversion and corruption. When looking at the various books and blogs about inspiration on this I saw a statement by Zak S. that was intriguing:

The Chimera is supposed to be the Sphinx’s mother.

It’s an interesting premise, but I wanted to take it farther. So here it goes:

The Chimera is a terrifying creature born from the victimization of a Sphinx at the hands of an evil dragon. The beast is corrupt and malign often seeking out confrontation and cruelty just for pleasure. The Chimera’s main head and body resemble a lioness with the tail and wings of a dragon. The Chimera has two other heads, a dragon and goat, which flank the Lioness’s head.

Dragon Head- The dragon head is able to use a breath weapon as the same color of dragon that sired the Chimera two times per day. Targets hit by the breath weapon take 3d8 damage. A successful Dexterity based save reduces the damage by half.

Lioness Head- The Lioness head bites and uses its claws to rake victims.

Goat Head- The Goats head is a physical manifestation of the unnatural conception of the Chimera. The heads fur is always slimy and wet, the eyes burn red, and the head droops as though the muscles have atrophied. Once per day the goat will raise its head and let out a terrifying and mournful bray that shakes any target that hears it to their core. Targets must succeed on a Wisdom based save or be overcome by the cry and unable to act until they make a successful save.

Possible World Knowledge

Chimera’s are fearsome creatures that prey on the weak.

A Chimera is immune to damage that is the same as their breath weapon.

Chimera’s are moderately intelligent.

The first Chimera was a dragon cursed by an angered God [F].

A Chimera’s gaze is able to turn a person to stone [F].

A Chimera’s blood is magical [F].

Choker [Pathfinder and Monster Manual]

I like these guys for some reason. I always have. I like the description in both books and have enjoyed putting these little bastards in dungeons where players least expect them. I pretty much leave them as is.

Chuul [Pathfinder and Monster Manual]

Obviously another monster inspired by H.P. Lovecraft. I could see these creatures making good guards and slaves for the Aboleth’s. Maybe they are extremely loyal to the Aboloeth who give them prey to torture.

Cloaker [Pathfinder and Monster Manual]

There is no amount of alteration that can make a cloaker cool. It is a manta ray looking enemy that pretends to be a cloak waiting to attack and eat those that are stupid enough to put it on.. yeah.. The only time you put this up against your party is when you clearly want to send the message of, “I have better shit to do.” Nix.

Cockatrice [Pathfinder, Castles & Crusades, Monster Manual]

The Cockatrice really is just another version of Basilisk. I was going to nix the beastie due to sheer redundancy until I read the C&C version. “Their feathers are foul and always falling out, leaving patches of their serpentine skin exposed… They prefer to eat rotten meat more than anything else, and for this reason they are foul-smelling creatures” (16-17).

What if we get rid of the whole petrify bite aspect of the Cockatrice and take it in a different route?

Necrotic Bite- A bite from the Cockatrices causes the skin of the target to begin to blacken and die, eventually falling off in a clump (much like leprosy). Targets must make a Constitution based save or take 1d4 Con damage per bite. If a targets Con falls to 0 they die, resembling an extremely rotted corpse, which the cockatrice will feed upon hurriedly. Only a remove disease style spell will restore lost Constitution and cure the blackened and dead skin.

Possible World Knowledge

A Cockatrice smells so foul people can usually tell that they are around.

Cockatrices become enraged when confronted by a healthy rooster and either attack it with abandon or flee.

The Cockatrice is born when a rooster or hen sits on and hatches toad eggs.

A Cockatrice’s bite turns a person to stone [F].

The Cockatrice is undead [F].

The Cockatrice can be tamed and used as a guardian pet [F].

Couatl [Pathfinder, Castles & Crusades, Monster Manual]

Benevolent Snake creature based on the Aztec god Quetzalcoatl. Too much like a God and doesn’t fit in with the way I run monsters. Nix.

There is room for the Couatl to be not benevolent but truly fucked up in its desires and what it demands from its worshipers. That would have merit, but I’d still want to think about it before going gun-ho and putting one in my game.

All three books have a slightly different version of what the Barghest is and none of them wholly appeal to me. Reading wikipedia for another form of reference (not to mention real life folklore on the beast) I decided that I like the idea of a Barghest (inspired by Bram Stoker’s Dracula) being an intelligent beast constantly filled with hate and self-loathing. It looks at humans and desires to be just like them. The creature lingers on the fringes of civilization watching and waiting for the right moment to strike.

When possible it will approach a lone target and attempt to befriend them (usually this doesn’t work) or just outright attack. Barghests are conflicted in their actions. They act violently against the target ravaging their body and mind as they consume their flesh and soul. Barghests are assailed with visions of the person’s life and emotions. This lasts for roughly a week during which the Barghest believes it has a place to belong. Once the visions leave the creature turns its sights on the rest of the family.

Feed: The Barghest sustains itself and its misery by feeding on the flesh and souls of humans. The creature gains access to the victim’s emotions, memories, and gains the ability to sound just like the victim. This effect lasts roughly one week.

Shape Change: A Barghest can change shape between a black wolf and its natural form.

Unluck: The despair of a Barghest saturates the area around it. Things break, accidents happen, people tend to be more irritable. Mechanical Option: A GM could decide that this unluck aura causes all targets in area to roll any test twice and take lower of the two rolls.

Possible World Knowledge

Barghest’s are terrified of their visage and will shatter any mirror they come across.

Barghest’s target beautiful or extremely talented people.

Barghest’s cannot stand the laugher of children.

Barghest’s are minions of demons [F].

Barghest’s are weak against silver [F].

Barghest’s cannot move in the sunlight. [F].

Basilisk [Pathfinder, Castles & Crusades, Monster Manual]

As with the Barghest I’m not really a fan of the various books incarnations of the Basilisk. I think that Pathfinder lost some cool flavor by explaining the creature as such, “called the ‘king of serpents’, is in fact not a serpent at all, but rather an eight-legged reptile with a nasty disposition…” That really doesn’t invoke any feeling of dread or mysticism for me. I’m more in line with J.K. Rowling’s version of the Basilisk. It is the king of serpents, spiders flee before it, the crowing of a rooster kills it, etc etc. That is a cool and powerful foe that has a crafty way it can be killed.

Stone Gaze: Anyone who is caught by the Basilik’s gaze is turned to stone.

Poison Fangs: The Basilik’s fangs are extremely deadly. Those pierced by the fang must make a constitution based save or die a horribly slow and painful death.

King of Serpents: All other snakes are cowed by the Basilisk and will not fight it and will attempt to get out of the creatures way. Spiders flee from the creature and its general vicinity.

Possible World Knowledge

The Basilisk’s fangs are extremely poisonous.

A Basilisk’s gaze turns a person to stone.

The Basilisk is immune to its own gaze.

The Basilisk’s scales are coated in a slimy toxin. [F].

The Basilisk has the ability to control people with its gaze [F].

The Basilisk is immune to fire [F].

Behir [Pathfinder, Castles & Crusades, Monster Manual]

The Behir is basically a dragon with legs. It has a breath weapon and can rake with its claws and yadda yadda yadda. Pathfinder and MM make reference or elude that it is an offspring or part of the genus of Dragonkin, which is boring. I started pondering on how this creature could become more frightening than just a derivative of a dragon and I started thinking about creatures in the real world. A hobo spider is pretty fucking scary, but do you know what is more frightening than that? A spider that can kill a hobo.

There is a particular type of spider (and I’m completely blanking on the name- but basically it is a smallish version of a daddy long-leg and has a pretty much all white body). These little bastards actively go after, kill, and eat hobo spiders, and are pretty resilient against the hobo venom.

What if the Behir is a dragon killer? It is extremely resilient to a Dragon’s breath (it can still be hurt by it) and maybe it has a poison that will slowly cause a scale rot on a dragon or something. Maybe it takes days or weeks or whatever for the dragon to die and this fearsome creatures just bides its time? What if you take the wasp approach and the Behir lays eggs in the Dragon’s stomach that hatch and eat their way out? If you’re a GM that has benevolent dragons or even evil ones that are in desperation, this could be a worth adventure or thing to encounter. A sick dragon fighting to the death only to roar in pain and die mid-fight and these small Behir baby larva things come bursting from the dragon’s belly.

Beholder [Monster Manual]

I have a love-hate relationship with a Beholder. They are frightening and weird and scary and awesome. However their sheer ability to kill every-fucking-thing-they-come-across-in-the-blink-of-their-multiple-eyes just kinda chaps my ass.. I generally end up ignoring half of their powers or use them all at various times.. but the whole casts X of these kickassery powers at will gets to be too much. However I think Beholders can be left as is because they are already fucked up and unique.

Belker [Monster Manual]

Plainly an anti-smoking ad. Not to mention part of the description is, “they are very reclusive, and have no interest in the affairs of others.” Ummm.. why even open your mouth? Nix.

Bugbear [Pathfinder, Castles & Crusades, Monster Manual]

I want to give Bugbears in my setting a different edge than the standard “they are the largest goblinoids and love to cause pain and misery just because.” I like the idea of Bugbears being this creepy disgusting creatures that live in the wilds. They have no association with the other Goblinoids, because they too are fearful of Bugbears.

The Bugbears worship spiders. I don’t mean in the Drow sense, where Lolth gives them guidance. I mean they just worship spiders; gigantic Arachnids that would as soon as eat them as let them follow them. Certain Bugbears, chieftains or shamans drink small does of Spider venom and have “visions.” These insane ramblings are the doctrine of the Bugbear people. It’s interesting enough to hear people talk and prophesize when they are on shrooms or LSD, but to be on potent venom, I think that could be entertaining (in a fantasy setting- I don’t need to hear a person’s death rattle from ingesting rat poison)!

Bugbears would still be lumbering dangerous beasts that live in clans or war tribes, but their structure and would make no sense to outsiders because of the way it is “ordained.” How do you argue or communicate with a group of creatures that believe eating the intestines of fallen enemies instills them with increased strength because their leader high on spider venom told them so? With a sword.

Possible World Knowledge

Bugbears exist in tribes that often war with one another.

Bugbears prefer to have a few charge directly in while others flank and catch opponents off guard.

Bugbears use poison to gain visions that they believe guide them.

Bugbears have poisonous fangs [F].

Bugbears have the ability to communicate with spiders [F].

Bugbears serve a powerful spider god [F].

Bulette [Pathfinder, Castles & Crusades, Monster Manual]

Bulette’s are cool. They work because people fear sharks. You describe this thing as a shark with hard armor and its on land and its coming at the players. They’ll start paying attention. The only thing I really changed on them is that they are able to move through rock and earth as though it is water, really going with that “land shark” angle.
This ferocious hunter literally swims through the land and leaps out and attacking, sometimes swallowing enemies whole.

Knowledge: I like giving my players conflicting information on creatures, because it makes it so they have to deliberate on what is the most effective and true piece of information. I will include a few of these with the monsters.

Aboleth’s are an ancient and vile race that dwells deep in oceans and lakes. They consider themselves superior to all creatures and have no qualms enslaving or killing en mass. Aboleth society is so foreign that not much is known about it. These creatures have an insatiable thirst for knowledge on what makes other life forms function. They use their Transmute Flesh ability to push the boundaries of reality and create horrors that serve them in all sorts of diabolical ways.

Mucus Cloud: The Aboleth is able to secrete a viscous cloud of mucus that hovers about them. This substance, when absorbed through the skin, creates a euphoric effect in the victim. Prolonged exposure can result in addiction and dependency. This ability is only useable in water.

Slime: On a successful attack from one of the Aboleth’s tentacles the target must make a Constitution based save or watch in horror as their skin begins to soften into a slimy membrane over 1d4 rounds. The creature’s new skin is soft and tender, which reduces their Constitution by 4. Creatures that are afflicted by this must keep their skin moistened or it begins to crack and bleed. The target is now considered aquatic and gains all the benefits and penalties of that. Remove disease will cure a person of this ailment.

Transmute Flesh: The Aboleth enjoy figuring out what makes a creature function as it does. They are able to morph and shape a creatures flesh in new twisted and vile ways. A target must make a Constitution based Save to resist the effects of this ability. An Aboleth can safely use this ability once on a given target every 24 hours. Any further use that risks killing the target (target takes 1d4 Con damage per other attempts with a failed save).

Possible World Knowledge

Aboleth’s are ancient.

Aboleth’s have a fear of fire.

Aboleth’s are the creators of many horrors across the world.

Aboleth’s are giant carnivorous fish [F].

Aboleth’s are able to read thoughts [F].

Aboleth’s are benevolent to those who serve them well [F].

Angels/Archons/et al.

I do not like to have any form of celestial creature as an active character in my game. I look at the stats of some of these creatures in 3.x and Pathfinder and think why the fuck is there even heroes when these bitches can do all that they can? Why are players out there fighting demons and devils when Angel’s are so much better equipped to handle the task? Kinda defeats the purpose. I tend to handle any sort of divine interactions as visions. It’s probably my Atheist nature but I rarely have Gods heavily involved. They may have some influence or sway, but mostly aloof about the mortal realm as a whole. Nix.

Ankheg [Pathfinder]

Ankheg’s are a plague to the rural areas. These creatures are roughly the size of a horse and love to feed on livestock. Ankheg’s live underground and use their pincers and saliva to burrow. To attack prey they use their tremorsense to get right beneath them, bursting from the earth and dragging food back down.

Another problem for livestock owners lies in how an Ankheg reproduces. The beast fertilizes its own eggs and then lays its eggs in a thin line on the grass where livestock will eat them. The eggs that aren’t destroyed (3d4) settle in the creatures gut and begin to gestate for roughly 2 months. At this point the eggs hatch and the larva, reaching up to 1 ½ feet in length, begin eating through the creature’s stomach. Only at this point is it evident that something is wrong with the creature. The larva will eat through the creature in roughly 1d4 hours and then begin to borrow into the earth. Once deep enough they will create a burrow that will house them while they pupate for 1 month into an Ankheg.

Acid Spit: When an Ankheg is agitated or afraid it can spew a glob of sticky acid up to a distance of 60 ft. The acid does an initial 3d4 damage and an additional 1d4 damage per round that the acid is not cleaned off. It takes an Ankheg’s glands six hours to produce enough acid that can be spit, thus the creature tends to save this until it is in a flight or fight mode.

Tremorsense: An Ankheg has the ability to feel creatures walking above it or around it due to tiny hairs on its legs that pick up vibrations from the earth. Ankheg’s use this ability while burrowing to get right below a creature and surprise their prey. Creatures get a -2 to any perception rolls when an Ankheg uses this against them.

Possible World Knowledge

Ankheg’s are afraid of fire and will skitter away from it.

Ankheg’s favorite meal is cow.

Ankheg’s are as intelligent as a dog.

The Ankheg’s chitin provides protection against acid [F].

Ankheg’s are as intelligent as a man [F].

The Ankheg creates a cloud that kills animals and crops [F].

Ant, Giant [Pathfinder]

There really isn’t much that can be done with Ants. At best you can make variants of ants. Fire ants do an extra d3 burning damage and maybe attackers take 1d3 damage from heat by being close to them. That’s about as far as it goes.

Aranea [Monster Manual]

Zak S. really has a point that there are just too many fucking versions of spiders in the various monster books. The Aranea can talk, shape change, AND cast spells. Its shape change ability is limited though. Natural form, human form, and a hybrid human/spider form… so basically it is a not-totally-evil Drider thing.. While it may be cool for players to encounter it.. I think that it is so hard wired into player’s brains, “AH SPIDER! KILL IT!” That it wouldn’t get much out in the way of a dialogue or something alternate than a slug fest. Nix.

Assassin Vine

The Assassin Vine is a dangerous adversary to those traveling through heavily wooded areas. It blends in perfectly with the surrounding flora and is almost indistinguishable save for its trunk which has a blood red tinted bark. Assassin Vines survive on bodily fluid of creatures, once done it drops the carcass to the ground. The ground littered with skeletons tends to be the only warning of the plants, and by then it is often too late.

Entangled: The Assassin Vine will attempt to entangle a target so as to absorb their bodily fluids. This is resolved as a normal attack, however for each additional vine that dedicated to the task, it receives an additional +1 to its roll. Targets take no damage from being entangled.

Vitality Drain: Assassin Vines live off of the bodily fluids of those they capture. When a vine attacks it attempts to force its tendrils down the creature’s throat and absorb its bodily fluids. If a target is entangled on the next round they must make a Constitution based save or lose 1d4 Con. Each round this test is made. Once the target reaches 0 Con they are dead and are a dehydrated looking husk of their former self.

Berries: After an Assassin Vine has fed berries will grow from its stalks. These berries contain the blood and life essence of its prey. If a berry is eaten it restores 1d4 HP.

Possible World Knowledge

The berries of the Assassin Vine are filled with blood that restores vitality to those who eat it (1d4).

Assassin Vines sap can be used in alchemy potions.

Assassin Vines are immune to fire [F].

Assassin Vines are intelligent and see out their prey [F].

Assassin Vines have extremely poisonous barbs [F].

Animals (Including Herd) [Et Al.]

I really don’t need to go into the various animals in the monster books; either a GM will use them because they fill a niche in their world or serve a purpose.

Athach [Monster Manual]

This is just a dumber and smellier version of an Ogre with an extra arm on its chest. When I get to Ogre I’ll discuss this in more depth. Nix.

I talked about some of the awesome ideas floating around the blogsphere about monsters, their various incarnations, and how they are handled (by myself and others) and how it inspired me to jot down my ideas as well.

Monsters… Creepy and frightening things that go bump in the night and keep people huddled together in their homes. Monsters have been a staple of role-playing games since the beginning, however somewhere along the way they became bland and generic. An attempt was made to make it so these monsters could be fit into any setting. The flavor was lost. Recently many blogs and authors have discussed or began to recreate monsters.

I decided to look at the Pathfinder Bestiary, Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 Monster Manual, and Castles and Crusades Monsters and Treasure as well as a plethora of awesome OSR blogs and historical reference to change the monsters into something I and my group would think was fun, cool, and entertaining.

Level 1 Alchemy– Alchemists are able to create standard alchemy fare with ease. Things like Twinder Twigs, Alchemist Fire, Acid Flasks, Tanglefoot Bags, Smoke Sticks, Sunrods, and Thunder Stones all are able to be made without a roll from the Alchemist. Each costs ¼ of the original cost and takes one hour to make. An Alchemist must have an Alchemist Lab to be able to create these.

Bomb– Alchemists are able to create explosive compounds by using strange chemicals and herbs. As the Alchemist experiments and becomes more experienced he can make more bombs each day and they are more potent.

An Alchemist can make a number of bombs equal to ½ their level (minimum of 1) to a maximum of 5 at level 10. An Alchemists bombs do 1d4 damage from levels 1-5, 1d6 damage from 6-8, and 2d6 damage from 9-10.

Examine Potions– An Alchemist can identify what a potions is by holding it in his hands for one minute and succeeding on an Intelligence check minus the level of the potion.

Extracts- Extracts are quick potions that an Alchemist can whip up in one minute. An Alchemist can only make a number of extracts equal to their level +2 per day. Extracts are unstable and go inert if not used by the end of the day.

An Alchemist starts with 2 level one Extracts. Each level an Alchemist makes a discovery through research and gains two new Extracts (to be determined randomly).

Level 2- Mutagen- The Alchemist has begun experimenting with potions and using his own body as the test subject. Through error or on purpose he has discovered a concoction that turns him into a horrible monster. The potion takes one hour to make and contains some of the Alchemists own blood. An Alchemist can only make one of these per day. If another person drinks this potion they must succeed a Constitution based save or become horribly ill for one hour.

After drinking the potion the Alchemist undergoes a painful transformation that takes a full round action. Once transformed the Alchemist is considered a Large creature and looks like a hideous monster. The Alchemist chooses either Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution and gains a +4 modifier to it. He also takes a -2 modifier to either his Intelligence or Wisdom as well as a -4 modifier to his Charisma. He gains +2 Natural Armor bonus and his fists now do a 1d6 + Str mod damage.

This transformation lasts 10 minutes per level of the Alchemist and cannot be ended prematurely.

Level 3– Craft Poisons (Intelligence) – Alchemists are able to craft various poisons, so long as they have the correct ingredients. An Alchemist must succeed at an Intelligence check to successfully craft the poison (as per the rules in Castles and Crusades Monsters and Treasure, pg 126).

Level 5- Poison Training– The Alchemist has become adept at handling poisons and no longer runs the risk of poisoning himself when applying poison to a weapon, etc.

Level 7– Brew Potion– An Alchemist has learned to give their Extracts permanency by taking time at an Alchemists lab and allowing the strange concoctions to simmer and stew. Brewing a potion takes a number of hours equal to the extracts level which consumes the Alchemists use of that Extract for the day and costs an amount of 100gold per spell level in components needed to preserve the potion.